Quan An Ngon, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam

On the way back from Siem Reap, we had a 7 hour layover in Ho Chi Minh.  What better way to spend a day than to eat your way through the city?

D Guy was prepared as usual and we tried calling four restaurants upon arrival.  As many restaurants are closed to celebrate the New Year, we did not want to risk disappointment.  Finally, Quan An Ngon, answered the phone and confirmed they were open.  We immediately headed to District 1 in a taxi.

  

When we arrived, it was a madhouse!  It seemed like the only place in town that was open and every tourist and local had decided to eat there.  Thankfully, they were extremely efficient, if not immediately friendly, and seated us in less than 15 minutes. Phew.

Then the feasting began..

 Vietnamese pancake

Crispy Fried Rice with Dried Shrimps

   Lotus Stem Salad with Shrimp & Pork

  Pounded Shrimp Hash Fried on Sugarcane served with Vermicelli and Rice Paper

  Freshwater Crab Vermicelli Soup with Tofu, Shrimp & Pork Paste

 Ca Goi with Vermicelli and Fresh Herbs

The food was wonderful and each dish was accompanied by a multitude of fresh vegetables and its own different sauce.  The flavours were varied and every single bite was tasty.  Their numerous kitchen stations enabled them to cater to numerous customers all while producing very high quality food.

As for the ambience, the ochre-coloured house provided a wonderful backdrop to our meal and exuded an old world colonial charm.  It is an unforgettable setting and certainly made us linger for quite some time.

Meric, Hotel de al Paix, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Meric is located in the beautiful Hotel de la Paix, not too far from the city centre.  Named after a pepper grown in the Kampot region of Cambodia, Meric is the restaurant you want to treat yourself to after multiple days of "tomb raiding".  It is probably better to save it for the last evening as it will render all other restaurants less than satisfactory.

  

We started off the evening with a drink, actually two, at the hotel bar/lounge.  I ordered the Cambodian Rice Brandy (coffee flavoured) on the rocks which smelled enticing but packed a punch.  I quickly followed up with a Khmer Martini hoping for something gentler and sweeter but it was equally strong consisting of vodka, lemongrass and kaffir lime.

We had a view of the inner courtyard which was mystically lit with gas-flame braziers and featured a beautiful tree in the middle of a little pond.

The restaurant is helmed by Joannes Riviere, son of a French chef & organic farmer from Lyon, who moved to Cambodia in 2002.  His cuisine is a mix of Khmer and French cuisine using produce from local farms.  The Khmer tasting menu changes according to seasonal availability and should not be missed.

The other items from the main menu were also excellent leaving us extremely well-fed.  Pictured here (from left to right) : Quail confit with spinach angel hair, crispy wonton and green mango dressing, Roasted Mekong Lobster, Coriander Rice Cake, Emulsion with Coral, Coconut Cream and Dry Vermouth, and Roasted Curry Rubbed Australian Beef Tenderloin with Red Onion Marmalade and Ginger Scented Sweet Potato Gratin. 

We had planned to paint the town red on our last night in Siem Reap, but after our sumptuous dinner at Meric, we all voted to turn in for the night for fear of spoiling our lingering happy impressions of our Cambodian experience. 

The Soup Dragon, Siem Reap, Cambodia

High noon is usually the time where everyone ducks for cover in the shade to escape the searing Cambodian midday heat.  We chose to take cover in a restaurant for a cold beer and some food.  The Soup Dragon boasts an extensive menu including a Vietnamese selection longer than the Cambodian one.  Despite the heat, there were people partaking in the hotpot!!

D Guy picked the best dish, as usual, and opted for a Cambodian curry with rice.  I chose the Pad Thai as I get Indochinese cuisine mixed up confusing Cambodian with Vietnamese, Vietnamese with Thai, etc.  Joy, in a fit of healthy living, settled for finger food to go along with our 50 cent Anchor draft beer.

Sitting on the balcony overlooking the street affords a good view of everyday life on Pub Street.  This meant that we saw a lean dark local jumping through a ring of knives to the sound of Cambodian music as well as the delivery of ice right from the back of an open-top truck, where the vendor cut the long pillars of ice with what looked like a rusty saw and hammer (thankfully my beer did not need ice).

The Soup Dragon -- Near Old Market, Siem Reap. T: (063) 964 933. Open daily 06:00-late.

Cafe Indochine, Siem Reap, Cambodia

It seems that there are as many versions of the Cambodian specialty, Amok Chicken, as there are restaurants.  In our continuing search for Khmer specialties, D Guy, Joy and I chose the Cafe Indochine as the site of our dual Chinese New Year - Valentine's Day dinner venue.

To make up for the absence of the missing musketeer who was dutifully visiting back home, we ordered enough food to feed four - the Khmer tasting menu for two and the Cambodian tasting menu for two.

Some of the dishes that were included : Deep fried spring rolls, Warm pomelo salad, a delicious hot and sour Lobster coconut soup, a vegetable curry that reminded me of sayur lodeh, the ubiquitous Amok Chicken, the Lok Lak Beef with fries and the black pepper beef (chicken not shown).

Not a bad showing by the restaurant, but a very poor showing from us as we struggled, of course, to eat everything.  Our tuk-tuk driver was the lucky recipient of the food we couldn't finish.  We just hoped he was not vegetarian or Buddhist as we had given him a good portion of meat and beef.  Happy Valentine's Day!

Blue Pumpkin, Siem Reap, Cambodia

Offering Free Wifi in Siem Reap appears to be a much more widely accepted practice than in more "developed" cities like Singapore. If you are looking for somewhere cool (ie airconditioning) with sweets and pastries and free Wifi, the Blue Pumpkin, is the place.

You can view their homemade offerings downstairs but head to the second level where the ac is cold and the lounge chairs large.  They welcome you with cold towels to wipe off the dust of the streets, however, they are tinged strangely with axe oil (commonly known to the Chinese as "wind oil").  On that day, I found it particularly refreshing as long as I didn't get any in my eyes.


Blue Pumpkin-- Near Old Market, Siem Reap. T: (012) 946 227. Open daily 06:00-22:00.

FCC Angkor, Siem Reap, Cambodia

If you get "templed out" but still want to claim that you are interested in history, drop by the FCC Angkor under the guise of wanting to visit the French Governor's former residence.  Upon arrival, you will be treated to a plantation-style art deco building that serves cold drinks and good snacks.

  

FCC Angkor -- Pokambor Ave, Siem Reap. T: (063) 760 283. http://www.fcccambodia.com Open daily 07:00-late.

Samot Fine Cuisine & Wine, Siem Reap, Cambodia

After spending a good part of the day travelling to Siem Reap, we were eager to go out to experience the local cuisine and nightlife.  

Samot appears often on top ten lists of places to dine in Siem Reap and apparently specialises in seafood, a combination which made the choice for our first night's dinner venue, easy. 

The Chef de Cuisine, Patrick Guerry, formerly worked at the Sofitel before starting his own restaurant.  Looking at the website, a 10-course menu was supposed to be on offer, but all we got was a rather limited menu and somewhat grim service.  Still, there was seafood to be had, however the pasta with clams barely had even a shred of clam in it.  The location was charming on a little side street with a Parisian feel.  

The seafood was fresh and the dishes nicely presented but somehow, the food lacked oomph.  Perhaps we were not French and therefore could not appreciate the finer points of the cuisine - the reviews on Tripadvisor (mostly in French) were certainly complimentary - but I guess it was not too expensive given what we ordered.

We had a complimentary amuse bouche of Tonle Sap shrimp to be dipped in salt and eaten with a squeeze of lime.  My Prawn Starter was nicely prepared but my Scallops on Asparagus was on the salty side.  The Penne, as mentioned, had hardly a trace of clams, but after our "feedback" the chef sent out a dish of clams in their sauce.  Sadly it was not very appetising.  A somewhat disappointing first meal in Siem Reap, but I guess it is not known as one of the culinary capitals of the world given the poor state of the economy.  Perhaps, the experience was more a reflection of our "big city" expectations than anything else.